


Stranded

by orphan_account



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Fluff and Humor, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-20
Updated: 2016-06-20
Packaged: 2018-07-16 07:12:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,913
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7257718
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>On a mission gone wrong, Keith and Lance end up stranded on a barren planet during an unexpected ice storm. Left to their own devices, they have to find a way to keep warm for the night. For once, maybe they can get along and only increase their unresolved feels.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Stranded

**Author's Note:**

> voltron is an awesome show and there isn't enough klance fic out there, so here's my contribution. this wasn't beta'd by anybody, so i apologize in advance for any typos. hopefully you guys enjoy homos in denial.

Lance burrowed as deep as he could into his jacket, leaning against the frigid rocks behind him and grimacing at the sizable cut in his shin. It was bad enough that the temperature seemed to drop with every passing minute, the cold biting into any bit of exposed skin. It certainly didn’t help that his leg was aching now too after that nasty fall into the crevasse. At least the bleeding had subsided on its own, although Lance was pretty sure it was because his legs were half frozen.

The crunching of boots on ice and a muffled expletive alerted him to Keith’s return, the other man’s face half hidden by the black bandanna he apparently carried around with him. “Well, did you manage to make any contact?” Lance had a sinking feeling he already knew the answer, but he couldn’t stop himself from asking anyway.

Keith yanked the fabric down off of his face, his face flushed with the cold and clearly unhappy. “Nothing, our comms are useless down here. I tried everything, even tried to scale the wall as far as I could. But no luck, it’s probably because of the storm up there.”

The red-clad man stomped over to where they’d made their little base, a.k.a. a relatively snow-free corner where Lance was trying to rest his leg. They had very few supplies with them, their Bayards really the only handy tools available. Overall, Lance would say this mission was an epic fucking disaster.

* * *

 It was supposed to be simple.

A team of two people, one small ship, and a quick stop on a planet free of life forms to gather samples of ice. In and out, Coran had explained, the goal simply to collect bits of preserved quintessence that could prove to be useful. Originally Shiro and Pidge were the two that were going to fly down and finish the job, which would’ve been ideal for getting it done fast and accurately. 

But the plan had changed when the castle’s navigation had run into a glitch that Pidge could help fix. Allura had asked Keith to go instead, and for some ungodly reason, Lance had volunteered himself too. He wasn’t about to let Keith one-up him, even on a minor boring mission like this one. Coran had just shrugged and claimed that the two of them would do a splendid job – and there was no better time like the present to build teamwork skills.

They’d taken one of the smaller transport ships, landing safely and going off to collect the samples. What they hadn’t expected was the abrupt, erratic storm that hit at the worst possible time when they both had strayed just far enough from the ship to get lost. A relentless barrage of ice and snow pummeled them in the surprise blizzard. They’d turned around to head back to the ship. Keith’s hand had been clutching Lance’s shoulder. And then Lance’s leg had crunched down through the snow and didn’t stop.

The rest of his body hadn’t registered he was falling until after Keith had futilely tried to grab ahold of him and they both went tumbling into what had been an invisible crevasse in the ice.

Lance’s leg got a nice gash on the way down, their comms were conveniently dead, and all they had were two Bayards and two backpacks with supplies for taking ice samples. They weren’t exactly equipped to handle surviving for days in a crevasse in an ice storm.

* * *

 

“Here, give me your leg.”

Lance almost jumped in surprise as Keith crouched down next to him, two gloved hands reaching out to grab ahold of his injured limb. “Hey, that hurts!” the brunette hissed in discomfort as Keith started to roll up the leg of his jeans. He didn’t stop, Lance yelping as he pushed it up past the cut, the fabric still wanting to cling to the wound.

“Just stay still, I have some first aid stuff for times like this,” Keith glared at him when Lance tried to pull his leg away. True to his word, Keith did have a tiny pack of antiseptic wipes and a small roll of bandages. As soon as the first wipe barely grazed Lance’s cut, the pilot reared back and let out a string of unintelligible Spanish curses.

“That stung so badly and it’s so cold, can’t you just give me the bandages and be done with it?” Lance whined as he tried to scoot backwards, but he was already up against the icy wall. Keith’s face dropped into its trademark frown, reaching out with the hand that wasn’t holding anything to grab ahold of Lance’s leg again. “Stop being such a baby and come here, it’ll only take a minute.”

Keith sounded more gruff than persuasive, but he gently tugged Lance’s leg into his lap, his hand coming to rest on his knee. “Just take a deep breath and relax, okay? I’m not gonna let you get infected.” Before Lance could start protesting again, Keith went ahead and started tending to his cut. 

Several pained curses and whines later, Lance sighed in relief as Keith moved on to the bandaging stage. He silently watched as Keith’s deft hands began wrapping his leg, a practiced movement. Somehow his calloused hands were still warm too, despite their frigid surroundings. He was the red lion after all, Lance thought to himself, eyes wandering up to Keith’s focused face.

Lance’s first realization was that Keith had exceptionally long lashes, unfairly smooth skin, and a distinct pout when he was focusing.

Lance’s second realization was that he was staring at said long lashes, smooth skin, and pout for way too long to not be creepy and he should probably stop.

“There, all done,” Lance blinked in surprise as Keith patted his leg. The red pilot looked proud of his own handiwork as he rolled down Lance’s pant leg, stowing away the remainder of his first aid supplies. “Now Coran won’t have to amputate your leg, thanks to me.”

“Yeah, yeah, anyone can bandage a leg,” Lance retorted, waiting a minute before continuing. “But, I…thanks,” the words stumbled out awkwardly and he could feel his entire face heat up as Keith stared at him with a smirk. “Did you just _thank_ me? The mighty Lance McClain, who doesn’t need anybody else’s help?”

Lance tried not to sputter, kicking at Keith with his good leg. “I’m perfectly fine with thanking people who help me, just not pretentious jerks who are mediocre at flying.”

Keith just rolled his eyes and climbed to his feet, snatching up their silent comms again. “I’m going to check to see if these work anywhere in this crevasse again. You stay here,” he set off in the opposite direction he had ventured in before.

“I’m not exactly going anywhere!” Lance shouted at his retreating back, then flipped up his jacket hood in an attempt to stay warm.  

He sure hoped those comms would choose to magically work, or that the storm would clear up soon. Otherwise, who knew how long they’d be stuck down there without food or warmth.

* * *

Nighttime was so much worse. It wasn’t noticeably darker in terms of light, but Lance could tell that the temperature had nosedived since earlier that day. The wind sounded like it was still going strong up ahead. Thankfully the crevasse kept most of the snow out. It still didn’t provide any additional warmth; Lance was starting to shake despite his best efforts not to.

Keith was huddled up similarly only a few feet away, the black bandanna covering most of his face, bangs falling into his eyes. It was hard to tell if he was awake or asleep, but judging by how he was awkwardly sitting upright, he couldn’t have been sleeping. Keith could see an almost imperceptible shivering run through Keith’s body too.

He wondered if he should say something. Maybe along the lines of “hey are you cold too?” but he wasn’t sure what that would achieve. They didn’t have anything to start a fire, nothing mechanical that could heat up. The only other option would be…

 _Nope,_ Lance firmly thought. There was no way in hell he was going to propose cuddling with Keith, his longtime arch nemesis and the bane of his existence. Even if they had bonded and all. Lance was a tough guy. He didn’t do things like ask to be cuddled.

But time slowly dragged on and the cold only got worse. Lance’s little shakes had escalated to full out shivers. No amount of rubbing his palms together or huddling inside his jacket was helping. He heard Keith grumble a bit, the dark haired man wrapping his arms around himself to help prevent his own shivers. Whatever they were doing, it wasn’t working.

“Um.”

Lance tried to break the silence, half hoping that Keith wouldn’t notice so he could just pretend like he didn’t have anything to say. But Keith looked up and over at him, dark eyes questioning, thick brows furrowed.

“Are you really cold? Because I am,” Lance’s teeth chattered together as he tried to muster a laugh. Keith stared at him for a long moment like he was crazy. “Of course I’m cold, you moron, we’re both sitting outside in negative temperatures. At least, it feels like it.”

They sat in silence for another long, shivery moment before Keith awkwardly cleared his throat.

“The smart thing to do would be to share body heat. So we don’t individually freeze.”

For some reason Lance’s face suddenly felt a whole lot hotter than the rest of his body. He couldn’t pretend that he wasn’t relieved Keith had asked first - at least they’d both been thinking along the same lines. It was also kind of annoying that Keith had brought it up like it was simple logic. Even though Lance was the logical one (or so he liked to think).

Lance scooted towards Keith, trying to keep an embarrassed grimace off of his face. “Sharing body heat, of course. It’s just the most obvious conclusion, ya know? What else would we do in this situation, it’s not like there’s any other way not to freeze to death, am I right?” His shoulder gently bumped against Keith’s and he almost jumped in surprise.

“Let’s lie down, it’ll make it easier,” Keith pulled himself away from the wall and started to recline himself against the ground.

“Wait, what, lie down? Why do we have to lie down? Won’t it just be weirder if we’re both lying down?” Lance was practically babbling as Keith glared up at him. “It would be weirder for one of us to have to sit in the other’s lap, wouldn’t it? Just lie down already!”

Lance scowled as he slowly laid his back against the ground, a foot away from the other man. It felt just as weird as he’d expected to turn his head and find Keith looking back. His face was only inches away and Lance could make out every detail – and those damn long lashes.

Feeling the need to say something to break the silence, Lance blurted out, “Well, now what?” It was hard to keep steady eye contact when they were so close. Keith’s face seemed to match the shade of his jacket as he shuffled closer to Lance. “I guess we just put our arms around each other, like we’re hugging. Like this.”

With only short notice, Keith hooked an arm around Lance’s waist, dragging him forward and down. The brunette grumbled in surprise as he found his face only an inch away from Keith’s chest. “Stop complaining,” Keith growled as he wrapped his arms around Lance, pulling him in closer.

Now Lance’s face really _was_ pressed against Keith’s chest – had it always looked as solid as it felt? He was going to suffocate to death, if not of literal smothering, of knowing he was pressed up against stupid Keith Kogane. What would the rest of the team say if they saw them like this? Hunk and Pidge would probably incessantly remind everyone of it and Lance would never live it down. And why was his own heart beating so fast anyway? Would Keith be able to notice?  

“Did you already fall asleep or something? We’re supposed to be hugging and you’re just lying there,” Lance could feel Keith’s chin move against the top of his head as he spoke. “Of course I’m not asleep,” Lance’s voice was muffled against Keith’s jacket as he slowly put his own arms around the other’s back. It was frustrating how muscular the mullet-haired pilot felt. Lance told himself it was just because of his own skinniness.

It was still cold, but not nearly as freezing as before. Pressed against each other, Lance could feel the steady rise and fall of Keith’s chest. His chin occasionally shifted against Lance’s hair, ruffling it. He wasn’t sure why he was so hyperaware of Keith’s slightest movement, the faintest shift of Keith’s hands on his sides.

Lance had slept cuddled up with his siblings plenty of times. He had a huge family, and when the heater was broken and the nights got cold, they used to pile up in a warm huddle. He should be used to sleeping next to somebody else, but when it was Keith…Lance willed his heart to stop pounding out of his chest.

An hour of silence passed before Lance hesitantly tilted his head up, trying to see if the other pilot was still awake. Keith’s eyes were closed, but as soon as Lance shifted his weight they fluttered open. With Keith’s head tilted down and Lance’s head tilted up, their faces felt extremely close.

“What’s going on? Is something wrong?” Keith’s voice was concerned as he studied Lance’s face. Lance quickly looked back down, pressing his face back into Keith’s chest to hide his face. “Nothing’s wrong. I’m just…I’m really glad that you’re here with me.” He was going to overheat at this rate. Lance was supposed to be suave and confident, not cheesy and embarrassed.

“I’m glad that you’re here too. We’re teammates, partners. Even if you’re a pain sometimes,” Lance could practically feel Keith smiling. “You’re really not that bad, McClain.”

Lance sputtered against Keith’s chest, face burning. “Don’t get any ideas, mullet head. I’m just saying I’m glad I’m not stuck down here by myself, that’s all.” Even as he said the words, his arms tightened around Keith, and he could feel Keith squeeze him back. Slowly, enveloped in warmth, Lance felt his eyes slide shut as he finally drifted off into some much needed sleep.

* * *

 

“…hear us?”

Lance groaned as an echoing sound broke into his dream, dragging him out of unconsciousness. His back felt cold, but he was lying on top of something soft and pleasantly warm. He burrowed into the heat, keeping his eyes squeezed closed and trying to go back to sleep.

“I think they’re over there!”

The echoes drew closer, something shifting underneath Lance. His eyes snapped open as he realized he wasn’t in his room tucked into bed like he had expected. Instead, he found himself nuzzled against a pillow that was red – and very much not a pillow. Somehow they had gone from sleeping side-by-side to Lance rolling on top of Keith like he was a human mattress.

Lance heard crunching footsteps approaching and what sounded like Pidge squawking. Keith woke up just as Lance pulled himself off of his chest in a panic, furiously wiping drool off of his cheek.

“Were you guys _cuddling?_ ” Hunk and Pidge were both standing feet away, Bayards drawn and comms blinking. Lance felt his mouth drop open as he experienced an odd combination of feeling relief and complete embarrassment at the same time. Keith sat up next to him, looking an equal amount mortified.

“We-we weren’t cuddling!” Lance indignantly squawked as a wide smirk grew on Pidge’s face. Hunk just looked between the two of them, skepticism clear in his expression.

“We were stuck an entire night down here during the storm! It was about time you found us,” Keith cut in, looking pointedly away from Lance as he glared at the rest of their team.

Pidge just snorted. “The ice storm somehow cut off our comms for a while, but thankfully it died down early this morning and we were able to track your location. It’s too bad we came down here just in time to interrupt your little snuggling session.” There was no mistaking the implication of that cheeky grin.

“It was only because Lance got cold!”

“You were the one who said we should cuddle in the first place!”

“That’s because you started going on about how cold you were!”

“Either way, you drooled on my jacket!”

“I did not – I don’t drool!”

“You totally do, you baby!”

Hunk and Pidge just gave each other a look as the two started arguing with each other for the hundredth time, voices echoing off of the icy walls. “Should we leave them here to snuggle out their feelings again?” Hunk proposed.

“Yeah,” Pidge’s eyes rolled. “C’mon, let’s go back to the ship. I’m sure they’ll start making out any minute now and I don’t really want to see it.”

It wasn’t until thirty minutes later that Keith and Lance looked around and realized their rescuers had already left.

“Guys? Guys, we’re still down here!”

They’d be stuck down there for a while.

**Author's Note:**

> talk to me on twitter @spaceiwa about klance or voltron pls


End file.
